Holness lauds Guyana’s push for regional food security

Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Jamaican Prime Minister, Dr Andrew Holness, on Tuesday commended Guyana’s President, Dr Irfaan Ali, for his leadership in advancing food and nutrition security across the Caribbean.

“I wish to thank President Ali of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, who has been expertly leading the region’s efforts under this portfolio [food security],” Holness said during the 49th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in Montego Bay.

President Ali currently holds responsibility for agriculture, agricultural diversification, and food security in the CARICOM quasi-cabinet.

The CARICOM Chair further highlighted the importance of agriculture to the region’s economic resilience.

“Food and nutrition security continue to be key elements of the agenda as we seek to reduce the region’s food imports through the transformation of our agriculture sector,” Holness said.

He also reminded those in attendance of the decision to extend the region’s ambitious ‘25 by 2025’ food security initiative to 2030, with additional resilient and sustainable goals. The ‘25 by 2025’ initiative was developed during the COVID-19 pandemic to cut food imports by 25 per cent by 2025.

The extended 2030 food security agenda will incorporate a tech-driven agricultural sector and encourage greater participation from women and young people.

The Heads of Government at the 49th Regular Meeting also endorsed the Food Security Formulation and Design Plan, which will guide future investments and programmes to boost regional food production and distribution.

During his remarks, Holness also referenced a recent study published in Nature Food, which found that out of 186 countries, only Guyana produces enough food to self-sufficiently feed all its citizens without foreign imports.